Bold opening: Two defending champions with rough weeks finally square off in Dubai, and the stakes are higher than a mere quarterfinal ticket.
Andreeva vs. Anisimova sets up a Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships quarterfinal clash after both shuffled through sluggish starts to their campaigns. The defending champion Mirra Andreeva and the No. 2 seed Amanda Anisimova needed time to shake off the rust, with their third-round matches marking their first actions of the week. Anisimova rolled past wild card Janice Tjen 6-1, 6-3, while Andreeva edged Jaqueline Cristian in a contest full of breaks, 7-5, 6-3.
Dubai: Scores | Draws | Order of play
A separate spotlight followed Jessica Pegula’s win over Eva Jovic, setting up a Dubai quarterfinal against Clara Tauson, and another night-session highlight saw Eila (Eala) notch a third Top 10 win by outdueling Paolini. In another behind-the-scenes moment, fans learned about the Player’s Box podcast and the group chat that’s engaging the fanbase in new ways.
Both Andreeva and Anisimova began the week with first-round byes, then benefited from second-round walkovers as Daria Kasatkina and Barbora Krejcikova withdrew with injuries. They also endured Doha’s early exit last week: Anisimova retired due to illness against Karolina Pliskova in the second round, while Andreeva squandered a match point to Victoria Mboko in the third round.
The two have met only once on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz prior to this Dubai showdown. About a year ago in Miami, Anisimova halted Andreeva’s 13-match win streak 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-3 in the third round.
Andreeva admitted she was “really far from perfect today” after finishing with 31 unforced errors, including seven double faults—three of which came as she failed to serve out the first set at 5-4. Reflecting on the match, she said she was battling nerves and difficult conditions but found a way to close it out: “I’m just happy I could walk away from the court as a winner. I had to dig deep and just force myself to hit the ball.”
The pattern of the match echoed through the narrative: Andreeva often hit her best return points, earned a break, then faltered with self-imposed pressure and a string of miscues, only to renew focus at the end of each set. Cristian will regret a missed drive volley to hold at 3-3 in the second set and the back-to-back netted backhands that ceded the crucial break.
Andreeva’s famous notebook—the viral habit of flipping through notes on each opponent—came to the rescue again. “When I served for the set a second time, I read my notebook and focused on everything I had written for myself,” she explained. The tactic helped her keep her service rhythm intact during the decisive moments.
The week has been unusual for the 18-year-old, who is defending a title for the first time in a tournament and has already benefited from a walkover in her opening match. She contrasted this rhythm disruption with Cristian’s more settled Dubai run and attributed the episode to Kasatkina’s walkover, which briefly unsettled her momentum.
With a victory secured, Andreeva expressed confidence for the upcoming date with Anisimova, noting that the American needed just 70 minutes to dispatch Tjen but showed occasional wobbling serves late in each set. “Tomorrow should be better because I’ll get into the rhythm,” Andreeva commented, adding that she’s eager for ‘revenge’ in the rematch.
This upcoming quarterfinal promises a battle of mettle and nerves, with both players eager to assert themselves in a week that has tested even the most seasoned competitors. Do you think Andreeva will ride the momentum and push past Anisimova, or will the American’s consistency prevail? Share your take in the comments.
